David Falk has represented some of the greatest players in NBA history — Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Adrian Dantley, James Worthy — but taking that illustrious list into consideration, it’s safe to say the word “super” hasn’t been applied to his agent tag for quite some time. Today, Washington Post columnist Mike Wise profiled the former super agent, who had some not-so-nice things to say about Wizards point guard John Wall. Falk begins with this line, from a previous column about Wall:
A prominent NBA agent, whom I’ll save from embarrassment here, told me a year ago the Wizards needed to unload Wall before the rest of the league found out he didn’t have trade value.
Turns out that prominent agent was Falk, a Wizards season ticket holder, who was more than happy to go on the record:
“I’m going to save you from embarrassment,” Michael Jordan’s former agent said as an introduction Monday night when he called.
A Wizards season ticket holder, Falk added: “You guys are in dreamland. Because this team [stinks] so bad you guys want John Wall to be someone he will never be.
“Before Wall becomes Nene, I would trade him and get rid of him.”
Wise scoffs, Falk digs in more:
“I’m serious. He doesn’t have a feel for the game,” Falk said. “He only knows how to play one speed. Magic Johnson had a great feel, a court sense, by the time he was a sophomore in college. Chris Paul had it by the time he was a sophomore in high school.”
“You can develop your jump shot all you want, but if you don’t know how to play more than an up-and-down game by the time you’re about 20 as a point guard, the chances of learning are very slim. I don’t see it happening.”
Then, Falk compares Wall to fellow young point guard phenom Kyrie Irving:
“Let me ask you a question,” Falk said, maybe 28 times over 30 minutes, often answering for you. “Who’s bigger, Kyrie Irving or John Wall? John Wall. Who’s a better athlete? John Wall. Who’s faster? Who’s stronger? John Wall.
“Now, who’s a better player? Kyrie Irving,” he said of Cleveland’s all-star point guard who was rookie of the year in 2012. “John Wall will never be good as Kyrie Irving was in his first week in the NBA.
In Wall’s defense, it should be noted that the Wizards had the worst record in the league — by a comfortable margin — while their floor leader sat with an injury. Since his return, though, the Wizards are out of the cellar in the Eastern Conference, and have a (very) long shot at making the playoffs. Their overall shooting percentages have skyrocketed thanks to Wall’s presence, while their highly-rated defense has improved as well.
Wise also took some jabs at Falk, wondering if he holds a grudge over one of his own clients (Evan Turner) going second behind Wall in the 2010 draft, or if he yearns for the days where he stood atop the NBA’s power broker rankings. Whatever the case, Falk can take solace in the fact his daughter is the one who broke the news regarding a sale of the Sacramento Kings, which means he still carries a certain pedigree among NBA circles.
